SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

Here is SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt. This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. We also mention companies of interest to preppers that are located in the region. The emphasis this week is on railroads, rail bikes, and rails-to-trails in the American Redoubt.  The region has a rich history of railroads.  Many  “branch ” (Class III) railroads were and still are used to haul grain, ore, logs, and lumber. (A hat tip to reader JML, who sent me the initial link that piqued my interest in rail biking and rails to trails.)

Region-Wide

Any time after April 5th, I recommend visiting the Inland Northwest Rail Museum, in Rearden, Washington. (25 miles west of Spokane.) The museum is closed in winter.

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Active & Abandoned Railroads of the Pacific Northwest

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The biggest railroad in the Redoubt is Warren Buffet’s railroad: BNSF.  (Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway bought the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad for $44 billion in 2009.) Oh, and they’re hiring.

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On the Beauty and the Beta podcast: Among other topics, a discussion of H.R. 8. (Matt Christiansen lives in Montana and his co-host lives in Idaho.) You can skip forward to the 1:16 mark.  That part of their discussion ends at 1:27:30.)

Idaho

Idaho Rail to Trail.

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Idaho Railroad Jobs

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In Idaho, Sandpoint is the “funnel” for railroads.

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Here is one statistic where Redoubt does not fare well: States With The Most Drunk Drivers JWR’s Comments:  Note that these statistics may be skewed. Perhaps it should be titled: States Where The Most Drunk Drivers Get Caught. You see, the driving distances to the local watering holes can stretch to 30+ miles in much of Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana. So the gendarmes have more time to spot and follow lane-weaving drivers. There are very few taxi services that serve small towns. And public transit buses and light rail? Ha! There are very few. I suspect that the level of drunkenness is nearly as high in urban states.

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And at Redoubt News, there is this: Idaho HB 17 – Grocery Tax Credit. The article ends with this warning: “I advise you to be wary of any bill that has had major controversy around it for years, then is randomly passed unanimously by both the house and the senate and signed into law with no hiccups.”

 

Montana

The Frank DeRosa Railroad Museum in Havre, is worth a visit. Admission is free.

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Great Northern Historical Trail

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The Longest Tunnel In Montana Has A Truly Fascinating Backstory.

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American Redoubt Courses: RTO Basic 15-16 June, Signals Intelligence 22-23 June, 2019.

Eastern Oregon

Oregon Short Line Railroad Association

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Joseph Branch Rail Riders.

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More about the same club: Joseph Branch Railriders – What a ride!

 

Eastern Washington

Exploring the Camas Railroad: Extreme Railbiking Part 1, Life is Like a Mountain Railway, Rail Bikes on Abandoned Railroads.

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When it comes to rails to trails, Washington is the best

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Some recent news; Washington State DOT seeks operator for P&L Branch Line

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Kennewick temperature plunge breaks 123-year record. More snow expected this week

Wyoming

If visiting Cheyenne, don’t miss the fascinating Cheyenne Depot Museum.

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Trains & Railroads in Wyoming

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Wyoming Democratic official calls for senator’s resignation after she is accused of comparing homosexuality to bestiality, pedophilia. Here is a quote: “GOP Senate leaders, meanwhile, said they were taking the concerns raised against Sen. Lynn Hutchings seriously and stressed that no one should be made to feel degraded.”  JWR’s Comment:  Perhaps they are making the wrong observation about degradation. Who was it that made the precipatory degradation? That state senator, or the folks who committed the degraded acts?

 

Send Your News Tips

Please send your American Redoubt region news tips and event announcements to JWR. You can do so either via e-mail or via our Contact form.




9 Comments

  1. As one who lives in a small BLUE New England State, I can attest that there are many, many people caught driving under the influence of alcohol, and oh yes, DRUGS, and distracted driving with their cell phone or electronic device. Winding roads and highways, too crowded, many trucks, no idea YET how to drive in snow/ice – how about really SLOWING DOWN??? Seems the first little snow storm, these Yankees have to learn how to drive all over again, and of course, many run out to the store to get basic foods! After more than 65 years of living here off and on, I wonder how this so-called highly educated state could be so clueless about some things!

    1. Most were never taught to drive in the first place,can’t relearn what wasn’t taught in the first place. Driving tests are a joke in this country and many testers take bribes(and get caught),refuse to fail or failures are overridden by superiors. Insurance companies make money off poorly skilled or untrained drivers,police,municipalities and car manufacturers also profit.

  2. Being a former DUI enforcement officer in a medium sized college town along the front range where I spent 18 months detecting and arresting hundreds of drunk (& stoned) drivers I can attest that there far more drunk drivers on the roads then most realize. The statistics at the time were that for every DUI incident detected there were about 12,000 that went undetected. [An incident being each time a vehicle is driven by an intoxicated driver, so if one managed to make it to 10 bars and then went home that would be 10 incidents] This equated to about 1 out of 10 drivers during the day and 1 out 5 at night in major metropolitan areas. The roads were teaming with intoxicated drivers where I spent my time just getting the worst off of the road, which had its many dangerous moments. Today, it is far worse with the addition of non-alcohol intoxicated incidents and distracted drivers on the phone. I can see where the statistics are distorted in states with smaller population centers and longer driving times between stops. Be careful and be attentive to all drivers around you, regardless the time of the day.

  3. Joseph Branch Railriders…That looks like some kind of fun.

    From the link:

    Currently, the excursion is a six mile ride between tiny Joseph (pop. 1,000) and the “big” town of Enterprise nearby (pop. 2,000).

    Having cycled many trails, I have never done one like this. I’m eager to check it out.

    Carry on

  4. Here in Connecticut, as of 3/9/19 we have had FOUR wrong way crashes in the last 30 days, on various major interstates, at night, usually late, some with fatalities. In decades, have never seen it this bad. The drugs are everywhere, and it is worse than the drinking, and sometimes the driver has been doing both. I felt a lot safer when flying small planes in the 1970’s than I would feel on the interstates now! My old instructor always said, “the most dangerous part of flying is driving to the airport!”

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